Method, apparatus and computer program product for accessing a facility directory

ABSTRACT

Accessing information about a facility includes loading a program and profile for facility services in a memory associated with a user&#39;s wireless portable device. The services have telephones connected via a local area network (“LAN”), so that a call originating on the LAN to such a telephone may be completed on the LAN without accessing a wide area telephone network (“WAN”). The program is executed on the user&#39;s portable device so that the device operates in a facility mode. In this mode the device displays the services from the profile, so that the user can select among them and easily place telephone calls to them solely over the LAN. In one alternative, normal and local sub-modes of operation are enabled. In the normal sub-mode the portable device places calls for the selected service via the WAN and in the local sub-mode the calls are solely over the LAN.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The present invention is related generally to wireless access toinformation, and more particularly, to wireless cell phone access to adirectory of services, such as hotel guest services, using shortcut keyson the cell phone.

2. Description of Related Art

The proliferation of the Internet has had many effects. It has led todevelopment of network, communication and data exchange standards. Forexample, Hypertext Markup Language (“HTML”) and Extensible MarkupLanguage (“XML”) have been widely adopted for data formatting tofacilitate information exchange. The HTML 4.01 specification isavailable at http://www.w3.org/TR/html401/and is hereby incorporatedherein by reference. The XML 1.0 recommendation is available athttp://www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xml-20040204/ and is hereby incorporatedherein by reference.

The proliferation of the Internet has also led to tremendousimprovements in communications infrastructure, less expensivecommunication devices and convergence of voice and data networks. Inthis regard, Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (“XHTML”) Basic hasbeen widely adopted for wireless device Internet browsers. This XHTMLBasic recommendation is available athttp://www.w3.org/TR/2004/REC-xml-20040204/and is hereby incorporatedherein by reference. Widely adopted communications protocols forclose-range wireless communication in the 2.4 gigahertz industrial,scientific and medical band include Bluetooth and IEEE 802.11.(Bluetooth is a trademark of Telefonaktibolaget.) Bluetooth CoreSpecification v1.2 is available at https://www.bluetooth.org/spec/ andis hereby incorporated herein by reference. Part 11:Wireless LAN MediumAccess Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications ANSI/IEEEStd 802.11, 1999 Edition is available athttp://standards.ieee.org/getieee802/download/802.11-1999.pdf and ishereby incorporated herein by reference.

All this has led to an ever increasing array of innovative networkapplications. According to one report, an integrated voice and datanetwork facilitates premise-based telecommunications with “follow me”links, which enables quick connection to an enterprisetelecommunications system for a mobile employee, and even enablesdownloading of an enterprise telephone profile to a computer/telephonewhen the employee is at a home office or a hotel room. “Tentative StepsFor Convergence,” Business Communications Review, February, 2000,paragraph 7. For years now hotel guests have been able to access adirectory of guest services and related information by means of atelevision in their hotel room connected to the hotel's local areanetwork. It has also been reported that travel industry enterprises haveeven tried handing out wireless communication devices to cruise shippassengers, so that while passengers are anywhere on board during theirvoyage they can easily make calls for dinner reservations or to planexcursions. “Travel Industry Cuts The Cord—Wireless Technology Makes ItWork Easier For Employees And Boosts Customer Service,” InformationWeek, Oct. 2, 2000, paragraphs 1-6.

From the above it should be appreciated that there is substantialopportunity and need for additional innovation regarding communicationsapplications, and particularly for those related to services fortravelers using wireless communication devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention addresses these needs by way of a method,apparatus and computer program product for accessing information aboutlocal services and destinations for a facility, such as a hotel. Eachone of the described destinations and services has a conventionaltelephone, i.e., connected to a conventional telephone network, alsoreferred to as a wide area network, so that the telephone is accessibleby a conventional wireless carrier network. (The term “wireless carriernetwork” as used herein includes a cellular phone system, such as asystem according to the GSM standard in the 900 MHz band, which is nowpervasive in developed countries, and permits calling among both wiredand cellular phones. It also includes a phone system of similarfunctionality, but of the satellite type, such as Globalstar.(Globalstar is a trademark of Loral QUALCOMM Satellite Services.)) Themeans by which the telephones are coupled to the wide area network mayinclude a local area network, such as a network limited to the facilitypremises. That is, the telephones may be more directly coupled to thelocal area network, which in turn is coupled to the wide area network.Accordingly, each of the telephones for the described services anddestinations may be associated with a shortcut number, by which such atelephone may be accessed on the facility local area network for callsthat originate within the facility local area network.

According to one form of the invention, a facility-mode program and aprofile for a local facility are loaded in a memory associated with aportable device, such as a user's mobile telephone. The profile includesa description of services and destinations offered by the facility. Forexample, if the facility is a hotel, the profile includes listings forthe hotel's front desk, concierge, room service, housekeeping, exercisefacility, restaurant, etc. (It should be understood that the distinctionbetween a service and a destination may not be significant. That is, thefront desk in a hotel is a place where certain services are available,so it may in one sense be a service and in another sense a destination.Accordingly the term “service” may hereinafter be used to describe aservice or a destination or both.) The profile also includes theconventional telephone number and the shortcut number for each listedservice.

The program is operable to display on the user's portable device theservices that are set out in the profile so that the user can selectamong them. When in the facility-mode of operation, the program is alsooperable to enable two sub-modes of operation for the portable device.For one of the sub-modes, a normal sub-mode, the program renders thedevice operable to place a call via the wireless carrier system inresponse to the user selection of one of the services displayed on thephone from the profile. In the normal sub-mode, the call is placed usingthe associated conventional telephone number listed in the profile forthe selected service. For the other one of the sub-modes, a localsub-mode, the program renders the portable device operable to insteadplace the call for the selected service solely over the facility's localarea network using the associated shortcut number listed in the profile.

In one aspect, the call over the local area network may be via aclose-range, standard-protocol radio signal. (As the term “close-range,standard-protocol radio signal” is used herein it shall include a radiosignal of limited power, i.e., for communication reliably no furtherthan 100 feet, according to a protocol for which there is a publiclyavailable, published specification, such as Bluetooth or IEEE 802.11mentioned above. In related terminology, the term “close-range,standard-protocol network” is used herein to include a network formed bydevices communicating at close-range, i.e., no more than 100 feetdistant, using such a close-range, standard-protocol radio signal.)

In one alternative, the facility-mode program for the user's portabledevice may automatically set the device in the facility-mode, localsub-mode of operation in response to detection of a close-range,standard-protocol radio signal that indicates the local sub-mode ofoperation is available. In another alternative, the facility-modeprogram may receive a manual signal from the user indicating to set thedevice to the local sub-mode.

In one alternative, some or all of the services are not accessible viathe wide area network, but rather are accessible only by the local areanetwork. In this case, for any service not accessible via the wide areanetwork the profile does not include a conventional, wide area networktelephone. Further, if none of the services are accessible by the widearea network, the facility-mode program only has one mode of operation,i.e., a mode like that of the so-called sub-mode.

It is advantageous that in the manner described above the user can notonly easily obtain and display a list of services for the facility bymeans of a memory-resident profile, but may also easily select one ofthe services and place a telephone call thereto. It may also betransparent to the user whether the routing of the call is by thewireless carrier network, which is largely external to the facility, orwhether it is by the facility's local area network. Further, if the useris in close proximity to the facility the routing may be by thefacility's local area network, thereby avoiding charges that mightotherwise be incurred for use of the wireless carrier network andavoiding possible delays that might exist on the carrier network.

Other aspects, forms and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent upon reading the following detailed description and claims, andupon reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features believed characteristic of the invention are setforth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well asa preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, willbest be understood by reference to the following detailed description ofan illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a facility arranged for wireless access to adirectory for services on a local area network of the facility,according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a gateway for close-range network connection to thefacility local area network, and illustrates a user's phone arranged forwireless access to the close-range network and to a carrier network,according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates structure of a profile, according to an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates operations for automatic switching of a users phoneto a facility-mode of operation, according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates two instances of local and conventional mode userinterface information displayed on the user's phone, according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a computer system suitable for certain aspects of anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates aspects of a computer program in flow diagram formfor a client-based facilities-mode program, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate aspects of a computer program in flow diagramform for a server-based facilities-mode program, in accordance withembodiments of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments,reference is made to the accompanying drawings illustrating embodimentsin which the invention may be practiced. It should be understood,however, that the drawings and detailed description are not intended tolimit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on thecontrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents andalternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the presentinvention as defined by the appended claims.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a facility 101 arranged for wireless access toa directory for services 150 on a local area network 130 of the facility101 is illustrated, according to an embodiment of the present invention.Numerous services 150 of the facility 101 are shown, which havetelephones 151 directly coupled to the local area network 130, which inturn is coupled to a wide area network 109 via a server 115, so that thetelephones 151 are accessible by a carrier network 110 within the widearea network 109 by their respectively assigned, conventional telephonenumbers. In the United States at the current time, for example, aconventional telephone number has seven digits and a three digit areacode. Also, each of the telephones 151 have a shorter assigned telephonenumber (also referred to as a “shortcut number,” an “internal extension”or “local number”), by which the telephone may be accessed on the localarea network for calls that originate within the facility local areanetwork. The number of digits for the shortcut number may depend on thenumber of telephones on the local network 130.

The local area network 130 is also coupled to a close-range, standardprotocol gateway 160, which in the illustrated embodiment is a Bluetoothgateway, for establishing a close-range network 125 to communicate withproximate devices such as the illustrated wireless phone 120, which hasa Bluetooth transceiver 170. As stated above, the local area network 130is also coupled to a server 115. The server 115 has a web site 145, aprofile 275, a server-based facility-mode application program 230 and aclient-based facility-mode application program 270 stored thereon. Theprogram 270 and profile 275 are for delivery to devices such as phone120. The server 115 is also coupled to the carrier network 110 and tothe Internet 140. Thus, the server 115 is capable of delivering theprofile 275 and facility-mode application program 270 to devices such asphone 120 by any one of these connections, i.e., a connection to thelocal area network 130 via the close-range network 125 or some otherconnection (not shown), a connection to the Internet 140 or a connectionto the carrier network 110.

Referring now to FIG. 2, particular details of the gateway 160 forclose-range network connection to the facility 101 (FIG. 1) local areanetwork 130 (FIG. 1) are illustrated, as well as details of the user'sphone 120, which is arranged for wireless access to the close-rangenetwork 125 (FIG. 1) and the wireless carrier network 110 (FIG. 1),according to an embodiment of the present invention. Certain details ofthe devices 120 and 160 that will be understood by a person of ordinaryskill in the art are omitted in order to more clearly focus on selectedfeatures of the present invention.

Gateway 160 has a processor 210 coupled to memory 220, operable forstoring software 225 for controlling the processor 210. Gateway 160 hasa Bluetooth, i.e., close-range, standard-protocol, radio transceiver 215operable to exchange Bluetooth—protocol radio communication with nearbydevices such as wireless phone 120. The software 225 in the illustratedembodiment also includes a Bluetooth device driver 235.

Wireless phone 120, which is a portable device of a sufficiently smallsize for carrying by a person in a coat or trousers pocket, has aprocessor 250 coupled to memory 260, operable for storing software 265for controlling the processor 250. The phone 120 also hastelecommunications circuitry 245, display 290 and a Bluetooth, i.e.,close-range, standard-protocol, radio transceiver 170. The software 265in the illustrated embodiment includes a browser 285, a Bluetooth devicedriver 280, telecommunications circuitry driver 245 and a utilityprogram 268 for managing downloads and settings, including assignmentsof hot keys. The phone 120 is shown in FIG. 2 having already loadedfacility profile 275 and client facility-mode application 270 obtainedfrom server 115 (FIG. 1), as will be described further herein below.Transceiver 170 is operable to exchange Bluetooth—protocol radiocommunication with gateway 160, including sending a telephone number toinitiate a call on the facility local area network 130 (FIG. 1).Telecommunications circuitry 245 is operable to communicate on wirelesscarrier network 110 (FIG. 1), including sending a telephone number toinitiate a call on network 110.

Referring now to FIG. 3, some additional aspects relating to the profile275 are illustrated, according to an embodiment. As shown, the phone 120memory 260 (FIG. 2) is operable for storing the facility profile 275,including descriptions 310 of hotel services 150 (FIG. 1). Examples ofservices for a hotel that may be in the profile 275 include the frontdesk, concierge, room service, housekeeping, exercise club room,restaurant, etc. The profile 275 includes conventional telephone numbers320, i.e., telephone numbers accessible via the wireless carrier network110, for the respective services in the descriptive list 310. Theprofile 275 also includes corresponding local telephone numbers 330,i.e., telephone numbers accessible via the hotel's local area network130 for the respective services 150. The profile 275 is preferably anXML file.

Getting the Profile and Facility-Mode Application Program.

With reference now to FIGS. 1-3, according to one embodiment of theinvention for which the facility 101 includes a hotel, a user makes ahotel reservation by an Internet 140 connection using a browser 285 onhis or her cell phone 120, or other such computerized device, such as adesktop computer, laptop computer, personal digital assistant, etc. Aspart of this process, the user ultimately selects a link on the hotel'sweb site 145 for indicating acceptance of a room offer. In response, thehotel server 115 checks the user's credit card, posts a charge to thecredit account, reserves a room, generates a confirmation number, andsends the confirmation number, check-in and check-out dates, room type,etc., back to the user's browser 285. In addition, the hotel server 115also requests permission from the user to download a profile 275 andfacility-mode program 230 to the user's phone 120 or other device, suchas described in connection with FIG. 3 herein, that includesdescriptions of hotel services. Depending upon the settings of theuser's device 120, permission may be automatically granted or else thedownload request may trigger a dialogue in which the user selectswhether to permit or refuse the download request. If the user performsthe reservation process using his or her desktop computer, for example,then once the profile 275 and program 270 have been downloaded to thecomputer the user may then manually initiate a transfer them to his orher cell phone 120.

Alternatively, the user may obtain a profile 275 and program 270 byselecting a link on a page on the hotel's web site 145 independently ofthe above hotel room reservation process. This could be done by the userfrom a browser 285 of the user's Internet enabled cell phone 120, orother device (as previously mentioned). Responsive to the userselection, the profile 275 and program 270 are downloaded from thehotel's server 115 to memory 260 in the user's device 120.

Selecting an Operating Mode.

Referring now to FIG. 4, flowchart 401 shows details for some additionalaspects of Bluetooth-protocol communication between the gateway 160 andclose-range transceiver 170, including service discovery aspects,beginning at 405, according to an embodiment of the invention. At 408the gateway 160 transmits a series of inquiry packets, which effectivelysearches for nearby close-range transceivers 170. Then, at 410, a phone120 that is within range responds with one or more frequencysynchronization packets. At 413 a connection is established, and at 415an asynchronous, connectionless baseband link is established via thegateway 160 between the phone 120 and the server 115. Then, at 418, alogical link control and adaptation protocol (“L2CAP”) channel isestablished. Then, at 420, the server-based facility-mode program 230uses the channel to query the program 268 on the phone 120 to determinewhether the client-based facility-mode program 270 and profile 275 havealready been loaded into memory 260 of phone 120. This includes sendingversion data, so that program 268 can determine if the phone 120 has thelatest version of the program 270 and profile 275.

In response to the query at 420 program 268 checks at 445 for theexistence of program 270 and profile 275 in memory 260. This includeschecking their versions, if the program 270 or profile 275 exist. Inconnection with the checking at 445, the program 268 replies. If thereply is in the affirmative, then at 455 the server facility-modeprogram 230 signals for the client facility-mode program 270 to execute.At 458 program 268 checks settings to see if the phone 120 has been setby the user to permit automatic granting of program 270 execution. Ifyes, then at 460, program 268 starts execution of facility-modeapplication program 270 and processor 250 accordingly initiates thefacility-mode of operation, so that as long as the phone 120 is withinrange of gateway 160, which may include a number of hubs (not shown),the phone 120 operates in the local sub-mode, communicating with thehotel services 150 telephones 151 via local area network 130, using theshortcut telephone numbers 330 (FIG. 3), instead of via wireless carriernetwork 110, using the conventional telephone numbers 320 (FIG. 3).

As long as phone 120 operates in facility-mode a directory of servicesis available for display (from the list 310 in profile 275 (FIG. 3)) andthe user may select services from the displayed list 310 forautomatically placing calls. Then, with the program 270 executing, theprogram 270 automatically receives an indication from transceiver 170 ifthe phone 120 goes outside of the range of gateway 160. If this happensthen the program 270 automatically reverts to conventional sub-mode ofoperation if the user places a call by selection of a service from thelist 310. That is, instead of sending the call via the local areanetwork 130, using the shortcut telephone numbers 330 (FIG. 3), theprogram 270 sends the call via wireless carrier network 110, using theconventional telephone numbers 320 (FIG. 3).

At 465 the program 270 sends an acknowledgment to the server program230, indicating the program 270 is executing as requested.

If program 268 indicates at 450 that the profile 275 and clientfacility-mode program 270 have not yet been loaded into memory 260 ofphone 120, then at 470 the server program 230 requests permission fordownloading the profile 275 and program 270. In response, program 268checks settings at 475. Depending on the setting, permission isautomatically granted at 480, or else at 485 program 268 notifies theuser of the request, such as by an alert tone. Responsive tonotification of the request, the user decides whether to grantpermission or refuse the download and signals program 230 accordingly at490. If the permission is granted, either automatically at 480 ormanually at 490, program 230 initiates downloading at 495 and then theflow branches to 455, signaling that the program 270 and profile 275 noware resident in phone 120. If permission is not granted, flow chart 401ends without downloading of the program 270 and profile 275.

If program 268 indicates at 445 that the latest profile 275 and clientfacility-mode program 270 have been loaded into memory 260 of phone 120,but the checking at 458 determines that the phone 120 has not been setby the user to permit automatic granting of program 270 execution, thenflow branches to 425, where program 268 notifies the user of therequest, such as by an alert tone. Responsive to notification of therequest, the user decides whether to grant permission or refuse theswitching to the facility-mode of operation and signals program 268accordingly at 430. If permission is granted, then flow branches to 460,which is described herein above.

Alternatively, the user/guest may initiate communication from telephone120 to the hotel gateway 160 and server-based program 230 via program268 once the guest is within range, such as upon check in. The initialcommunication by the guest's device 120 may include permission for thedownload, or else the program 230 may request permission for thedownload in response to the guest's initial communication.

Referring now to FIG. 5, two instances 501 and 502 of user interfacefeatures are illustrated as displayed on 290 of user's phone 120 (FIG.2) for initiating facility-mode operation, according to an embodiment ofthe present invention.

In the first instance 501, a utility program such as program 268 of thephone 120 has been used to associate facility-mode program 270 with a“hot” key sequence “*11.” Accordingly, for the illustrated instance 501,the display 290 shows the user has entered “*11” on phone 120 (FIG. 2)keypad to start execution of the facility-mode program 270, which putsthe phone 120 in the “facility” mode of operation. This generates thelist 310 on display 290 as shown at instance 503 so the user canautomatically call services 150 (FIG. 1) by selecting from the list 310,e.g., by tapping on the list 310 (if the display is touch sensitive), orby scrolling a cursor using keys of the phone 120, or the like.

In the second instance 502, the information shown on display 290 is thenotification referred to in block 425 of FIG. 4, in which the program268 is requesting the user if permission is granted to start thefacility-mode program 270 due to automatic sensing of proximity of theclose-range, standard-protocol network. If the user grants permission,as shown, by selecting “yes,” the facility-mode program 270 executes,etc.

Although the program 270 automatically responds to loss of theclose-range, standard-protocol network, as described herein above, notethat in the third instance 503, i.e., with the phone 120 infacility-mode operation, two icons 510 and 520 are shown. These are formanually selecting between local operating sub-mode in which calls areplace by the local area network 130 (FIG. 1) and the conventionalsub-mode, in which calls are place by the carrier network 110 (FIG. 1).In the illustration, icon 510 appears as a hotel building, signifyingthat by selecting this button the phone 120 will go into local sub-mode.Icon 520 appears on the display 290 as a grid, such as a grid ofstreets, signifying that by selecting this button the phone 120 will gointo the conventional sub-mode.

Alternatively, instead of the two icons 510 and 520 being displayed,only one of them may be displayed. For example, the hotel icon 510 maybe used alone, wherein it is gray if not selected, indicating the phone120 is in conventional sub-mode, and bold black when selected,indicating the phone 120 is in local sub-mode. In another alternative, asingle icon may be displayed but its appearance may change as the iconis toggled between the two modes, so that in one mode the icon appearsas the hotel 510, indicating the phone 120 is in local sub-mode, and inthe other mode the icon appears as the grid 520, indicating the phone120 is in conventional sub-mode.

Referring to FIG. 6, a block diagram is shown illustrating a computersystem 610 suitable for server 115 of FIG. 1, according to an embodimentof the present invention. In various embodiments, system 610 takes avariety of forms, including a personal computer system, mainframecomputer system, workstation, server, etc. That is, it should beunderstood that the term “computer system” is intended to encompass anydevice having a processor that executes instructions from a memorymedium. Likewise, although the term “server” is used herein above andserver 115 is shown in FIG. 1, it should be understood that the computersystem hosting the service provider's Web site may take a variety offorms in different embodiments of the invention and is not necessarilylimited to a so-called “server.”

System 610 includes a processor 615, a volatile memory 627, e.g., RAM, akeyboard 633, a pointing device 630, e.g., a mouse, a nonvolatile memory629, e.g., ROM, hard disk, floppy disk, CD-ROM, and DVD, and a displaydevice 637 having a display screen. Memory 627 and 629 are for storingprogram instructions (also known as a “software program”), which areexecutable by processor 615, to implement various embodiments of amethod in accordance with the present invention. In various embodimentsthe one or more software programs are implemented in various ways,including procedure-based techniques, component-based techniques, and/orobject-oriented techniques, among others. Specific examples include XML,C, C++ objects, Java and commercial class libraries. Components includedin system 610 are interconnected by bus 640. A communications device(not shown) may also be connected to bus 640 to enable informationexchange between system 610 and other devices. The gateway 160 of FIG. 1may be included in the system 610.

The description of the present embodiment has been presented forpurposes of illustration, but is not intended to be exhaustive or tolimit the invention to the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Toreiterate, the embodiments were chosen and described in order to bestexplain the principles of the invention, the practical application, andto enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand theinvention. Various other embodiments having various modifications may besuited to a particular use contemplated, but may be within the scope ofthe present invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art willappreciate that the hardware and methods illustrated herein may varydepending on the implementation. For example, it should be understoodthat while the Bluetooth wireless communications protocol has beendescribed for the short-range radio communications protocol of theillustrated embodiment, it is within the spirit and scope of theinvention to encompass an embodiment using another protocol, such asIEEE 802.11.

In another variation, for example, although the portable device of theillustrated embodiment has been described as a telephone 120 (FIG. 2),it should be understood that the term “telephone” is intended toencompass devices such as personal digital assistants. Other deviceshaving more or less processors and memory devices and the like may beused in addition to or in place of the hardware depicted. The depictedexample is not meant to necessarily imply architectural limitations withrespect to the present invention.

Again referring to FIG. 1, in the description above there has been afocus on communication from a guest's wireless phone 120 to telephonesat various service locations 150 in a facility 101, such as a hotel. Inan enhancement to what has been described, upon establishing service forphone 120, server-based facility-mode program 230 may also establish alocal number for the phone 120 so that calls from telephones 150 withinthe facility 101 may be routed to the phone 120 via LAN 130. That is,for example, the server-based facilities mode program may establish anumber on the local area network for the user's wireless telephone,receive a call originating on the local area network for the user'stelephone from a telephone in the facility and route the calloriginating on the local area network to the user's telephone solely viathe local area network. With reference to FIG. 1, other variationsconcern server 115, local area network 130 and Internet service 140 forfacility 101. A single computer system is depicted for server 115 ofFIG. 1, which provides numerous functions, including i) couplingtelephones 151 of facility 101 to, and routing calls to and from, thetelephone carrier network 110 via LAN 130, ii) hosting a web site 145for the facility 101, iii) storing the profile 275 and client-basedfacility mode program 270 for serving to clients upon request, iv)coupling the facility 101 to the Internet 140 and v) assigning numbersto user wireless telephones and routing calls to those telephones on thelocal area network. In various alternative embodiments, a number ofcomputer systems, such as instances of computer system 610 (FIG. 6), maybe dedicated to serving each respective one of these functions, orvarious combinations of the functions. Note also that there is a trend,as stated herein above, for integrating voice and data networks. (Thisis commonly referred to as “voice over Internet Protocol,” or “VoIP.”)Thus, although the arrangement of FIG. 1 depicts LAN 130 and Internet140 as two networks, this may alternatively be a single network.

As described in the Summary herein above, in one alternative some or allof the services are not accessible via the wide area network, but ratherare accessible only by the local area network. In this case, for anyservice not accessible via the wide area network the profile does notinclude a conventional, wide area network telephone number. Further, ifnone of the services are accessible by the wide area network, thefacility-mode program only has one mode of operation, i.e., a mode likethat of the “local” sub-mode.

It is important to note that while the present invention has beendescribed in the context of a portable device having a processor andmemory, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that theprocesses of the present invention are capable of being distributed ascomputer readable medium of instructions in a variety of forms and thatthe present invention applies equally regardless of the particular typeof signal bearing media actually used to carry out the distribution.Examples of computer readable media include recordable-type media such afloppy disc, a hard disk drive, a RAM, and CD-ROMs and transmission-typemedia such as digital and analog communications links.

Referring now to FIG. 7 in association with FIG. 1, aspects of acomputer program are illustrated in flow diagram form for an embodimentof the client-based facilities-mode program 270, in accordance with whathas been described herein above. As shown in block 710, the program 270enables the user's wireless telephone 120 to operate in a facility-mode.The facilities mode may be invoked manually by the user or automaticallyin response to detecting proximity to gateway 160 or an associated hub(not shown) in local area network 130. Likewise, local or normalsub-modes may be invoked manually by the user or automatically inresponse to whether the gateway 160 is within range. In the facilitymode, the user's telephone 120 displays the services from the profile275, as shown in block 720. The program 270 then receives a selection ofone of the services 150 from the display, as shown in block 730.

In response, the program 270 causes the user's telephone 120 to place acall to the selected service 150, as shown in block 740. If in thenormal sub-mode, the call is placed via the wide area network 109 to aselected one of the services 150 using the associated longer telephonenumber 320 (FIG. 3) listed in the profile 275 for the selected service.If in the local sub-mode, the call is placed solely over the local areanetwork 130 to a selected one of the services 150 using the associatedshortcut number 330 (FIG. 3) listed in the profile 275 for the selectedservice 150.

Referring now to FIG. 8A in association with FIG. 1, aspects of acomputer program are illustrated in flow diagram form for an embodimentof the server-based facilities-mode program 230, in accordance with whathas been described herein above. As shown in block 810, the program 230receives a call for one of the service telephones 151 from the user'swireless telephone 120. Then, in block 820, the program 230 routes thecall over the local network 130 to one of the service's telephones 151in response to receiving a telephone number for the service 150 from theuser's wireless telephone 120, wherein the telephone number may be theservice's shortcut number 330 (FIG. 3), which is received via aclose-range, standard-protocol radio signal via the gateway 160, and,alternatively, the telephone number may be the service's longer number320 (FIG. 2), which is received via the wide area network 109.

Referring now to FIG. 8B in association with FIG. 1, additional aspectsof a computer program are illustrated in flow diagram form for anembodiment of the server-based facilities-mode program 230, inaccordance with what has been described herein above. In block 850 theprogram 230 establishes a number on the local area network 130 for theuser's wireless telephone 120. Then, in block 860, the program 230receives a call originating on the local area network 130 for the user'stelephone 120 from a telephone such as one of the service telephones 151in the facility 101, or even from a telephone in a guest room (notshown). Next, the program 230 routes the call originating on the localarea network 130 to the user's telephone 120 solely via the local areanetwork 130.

To reiterate, many additional aspects, modifications and variations arealso contemplated and are intended to be encompassed within the scope ofthe following claims. Moreover, it should be understood that in thefollowing claims actions are not necessarily performed in the particularsequence in which they are set out.

1. A method for accessing information about local services offered by afacility, the method comprising the steps of: loading a facility-modeprogram and a profile for the facility in a memory associated with auser's portable device, wherein the profile includes a description ofthe local services, the services having respective telephones connectedvia a local area network of the facility, so that a call originating onthe local area network to such a telephone may be completed on the localarea network without accessing a wide area network; and executing theprogram on the user's portable device, so that the portable device isenabled to operate in a normal mode and a facility mode, wherein in thefacility mode the user's portable device displays the services from theprofile, so that the user can select among the services, and the user'sportable device places a telephone call for a selected one of theservice telephones solely over the local area network via a close-range,standard-protocol radio signal, and in the normal mode the user'sportable device places calls to telephones on the wide area network. 2.The method of claim 1, wherein the service telephones are connected viathe local area network to the wide area telephone network, the wide areanetwork including a wireless carrier network, and normal and localsub-modes of operation are enabled in the facilities mode, wherein inthe normal sub-mode of operation the user's portable device places thecall to the selected service telephone via the wide area network.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the facility-mode program for the user'sportable device automatically sets the user's portable device in thefacility mode, local sub-mode of operation in response to detection of aclose-range, standard-protocol radio signal that indicates the localarea network is within range.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein thefacility-mode program sets the user's portable device in the facilitymode, local sub-mode of operation in response to a manual signal fromthe user.
 5. The method of claim 2, wherein the telephones for theservices have respective shortcut telephone numbers included in theprofile by which the telephones are accessible on the local area networkand have longer telephone numbers included in the profile by which thetelephones are accessible on the wide area network, and wherein in thenormal sub-mode the call is placed using the associated longer telephonenumber listed in the profile for the selected service and in the localsub-mode the call is placed using the associated shortcut number listedin the profile for the selected service.
 6. A method for providingaccess to information about local services offered by a facility, themethod comprising the steps of: sending a client-based facility-modeprogram and a profile for the facility for loading in a memoryassociated with a user's portable device, wherein the profile includes adescription of the local services, the services having respectivetelephones connected via a local area network of the facility to a widearea telephone network, wherein the telephones for the services haverespective shortcut telephone numbers by which the telephones areaccessible within the local area network and have longer telephonenumbers by which the telephones are accessible within the wide areanetwork and wherein the profile includes the longer telephone numbersand the shortcut numbers for the services; and routing a call over thelocal network to one of the service telephones in response to receivinga telephone number for the service from the user's portable device,wherein the telephone number may be the shortcut number received via aclose-range, standard-protocol radio signal and the telephone number maybe the longer number received via the wide area network.
 7. The methodof claim 6, comprising the steps of: transmitting inquiry packets tosearch for nearby portable devices having close-range, standard-protocoltransceivers; and querying a responding portable device to determinewhether the client-based facility-mode program and profile have alreadybeen loaded into memory of the responding portable device.
 8. The methodof claim 6, comprising the steps of: establishing a telephone number onthe local area network for the user's portable device; receiving a callfor the user's portable device, wherein the call originates on the localarea network from a telephone in the facility; routing the calloriginating on the local area network to the user's portable devicesolely via the local area network.
 9. A computer program product foraccessing information about local services offered by a facility, thecomputer program product comprising: a profile for the facility forloading in a memory associated with a user's portable device, whereinthe profile includes a description of the local services, the serviceshaving respective telephones connected via a local area network of thefacility, so that a call originating on the local area network to such atelephone may be completed on the local area network without accessing awide area network; and instructions for enabling the user's portabledevice to operate in a normal mode and a facility mode, wherein in thefacility mode the user's portable device displays the services from theprofile, so that the user can select among the services, and the user'sportable device places a telephone call for a selected one of theservice telephones solely over the local area network via a close-range,standard-protocol radio signal, and in the normal mode the user'sportable device places calls to telephones on the wide area network. 10.The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the service telephonesare connected via the local area network to the wide area telephonenetwork, the wide area network including a wireless carrier network, andnormal and local sub-modes of operation are enabled in the facilitiesmode, wherein in the normal sub-mode of operation the user's portabledevice places the call to the selected service telephone via the widearea network.
 11. The computer program product of claim 10, wherein thefacility-mode program for the user's portable device automatically setsthe user's portable device in the facility mode, local sub-mode ofoperation in response to detection of a close-range, standard-protocolradio signal that indicates the local area network is within range. 12.The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the facility-modeprogram sets the user's portable device in the facility mode, localsub-mode of operation in response to a manual signal from the user. 13.The computer program product of claim 10, wherein the telephones for theservices have respective shortcut telephone numbers included in theprofile by which the telephones are accessible on the local area networkand have longer telephone numbers included in the profile by which thetelephones are accessible on the wide area network, and wherein in thenormal sub-mode the call is placed using the associated longer telephonenumber listed in the profile for the selected service and in the localsub-mode the call is placed using the associated shortcut number listedin the profile for the selected service.
 14. A computer program productfor providing access to information about local services offered by afacility, the computer program product comprising: a profile for thefacility for loading in a memory associated with a user's portabledevice, wherein the profile includes a description of the localservices, the services having respective telephones connected via alocal area network of the facility to a wide area telephone network,wherein the telephones for the services have respective shortcuttelephone numbers by which the telephones are accessible within thelocal area network and have longer telephone numbers by which thetelephones are accessible within the wide area network and wherein theprofile includes the longer telephone numbers and the shortcut numbersfor the services; and instructions for routing a call over the localnetwork to one of the service telephones in response to receiving atelephone number for the service from the user's portable device,wherein the telephone number may be the shortcut number received via aclose-range, standard-protocol radio signal and the telephone number maybe the longer number received via the wide area network.
 15. Thecomputer program product of claim 14, comprising: instructions fortransmitting inquiry packets to search for nearby wireless portabledevices having close-range, standard-protocol transceivers; andinstructions for querying a responding portable device to determinewhether the client-based facility-mode program and profile have alreadybeen loaded into memory of the responding portable device.
 16. Thecomputer program product of claim 14, comprising: instructions forestablishing a telephone number on the local area network for the user'sportable device; instructions for receiving a call for the user'sportable device, wherein the call originates on the local area networkfrom a telephone in the facility; instructions for routing the calloriginating on the local area network to the user's portable devicesolely via the local area network.
 17. A system for providing access toinformation about local services offered by a facility, the systemcomprising: a computer system having a stored profile for the facilityfor sending to a user's portable device, wherein the profile includes adescription of the local services; a local area network for the facilityconnected to respective telephones for the services, wherein thecomputer system has a client-based facility-mode program for sending tothe user's portable device to enable the user's portable device tooperate in a facility mode, wherein in the facility mode the user'sportable device displays the services from the profile, so that the usercan select among the services, and the user's portable device sends thelocal area network a telephone call, via a close-range,standard-protocol radio signal, for a selected one of the servicetelephones for routing solely over the local area network, and in thenormal mode the user's portable device places calls to telephones on awide area network.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the servicetelephones are connected via the local area network to the wide areatelephone network, the wide area network including a wireless carriernetwork, and normal and local sub-modes of operation are enabled in thefacilities mode, wherein in the normal sub-mode of operation the user'sportable device places the call to the selected service telephone viathe wide area network.
 19. The system of claim 18, comprising aclose-range, standard-protocol radio-signal gateway coupled to the localarea network, wherein for the call over the local area network theuser's portable device accesses the local area network via the gateway.20. The method of claim 18, wherein the telephones for the services haverespective shortcut telephone numbers included in the profile by whichthe telephones are accessible on the local area network and have longertelephone numbers included in the profile by which the telephones areaccessible on the wide area network, and wherein in the normal sub-modethe call is placed using the associated longer telephone number listedin the profile for the selected service and in the local sub-mode thecall is placed using the associated shortcut number listed in theprofile for the selected service.